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Helena took a step toward her and some of the veneer that typically kept her perfectly expressionless face intact cracked and fell away. “I said you were right. Your father is sick. Something you would have already known if you’d allowed me to speak rather than barging in and rambling like a lunatic.”
A wave of embarrassment briefly washed over her, warming her cheeks, but she lifted her chin a notch. The measure of confidence she’d gained by releasing years of pent-up hurt and frustration wiped away the momentary guilt. “I probably could have handled that better, but I don’t regret anything I said.”
The tight lines around her mother’s eyes and mouth softened slightly before she schooled her features back into a much more controlled expression. “You most certainly could have.” She nodded in Dean’s direction. “Thanks to Dean, we’ve learned that your father’s addiction is an illness and something we will need to work on for a long time.”
She blinked rapidly and shook her head slightly. “But that’s not the reason I’m here. It was unfair of me, of both your father and I, to lay such a heavy responsibility on you. And to ask you to do something like get married just to appease your grandfather’s stipulations and access the money we needed.”
Emerald eyes that mirrored her own locked on Jillian’s gaze. “I can’t pretend to understand your mission in life to help people you’ve never met, but, darling,” her mother closed the few feet between them and clasped her daughter’s hands tightly in hers, “I am so proud of what you’ve done.”
Edward laid a hand on Jillian’s shoulder. “Weare proud of what you’ve done.”
Jillian’s mouth fell open and her gaze darted back and forth between her parents. “You’re…what?”
“We’re proud of you.” The words penetrated deeper into Jillian’s heart, adding small droplets to the empty lake of motherly love she’d never known before. “And your father and I managed to sit down and make massive cuts in some areas and sell off certain assets so our problems don’t need to affect you anymore.”
Sobs rolled through her body, unchecked and unbidden. Weight that continued to burden Jillian lifted and deep fractures inside her began to knit themselves together.
The older woman wrapped her in a warm hug, her own tears coating Jillian’s shoulder. “I made many mistakes as your mother, the biggest one is that I acted like my own mother. I am so sorry, darling.”
Words drifted through the fog of her consciousness, but Jillian was incapable of uttering them out loud, choosing instead to hold her mother tighter. Long seconds passed in mostly silence punctuated by sniffles and hiccups. When Helena finally released her, Jillian could have sworn they had both morphed into new beings.
“I love you, Mother.” It was a phrase she hadn’t spoken since childhood, long ago learning to keep emotions to yourself.
Helena patted her cheek. “I love you too, my darling daughter.” Her eyes wandered over to where Dean stood, leaning against the wall, allowing the women as much privacy as the small space allowed. “Your husband is a rather remarkable man. His guidance has changed so much for your father and I.” She lifted a brow and gave him a sardonic grin. “Even if he is new money.”
She pulled a cloth from the clutch she held under her arm and dabbed beneath her lids. She laid her hand in the crook of Edward’s arm. “We must go now, but…Jillian, I’d love to spend more time with you.”
Jillian nodded emphatically. “I’d love that too, Mother.”
As her parents exited their home with a soft click of the door, Jillian launched herself at Dean again. “How in the ever loving hell did you manage all that?”
His large palm stroked up and down her spine. “Part of the program is counseling for loved ones of those who are overcoming addiction. It’s a partnership, and I’m not directly involved in it, but I’d…recommended it to your mother as well. I honestly didn’t believe she’d actually go.”
“But she did,” Jillian finished for him.
“But she did,” he repeated, loosening his hold enough her feet touched the floor once more.
Jillian held his face between her palms and lifted up onto her tiptoes to plant a soft kiss on his lips. “I love you, but I’ll still punch you if you tell anyone I was crying.”
Epilogue
Jillian
Three Months Later
“Uncle Dean!”
Cheers went up from the pool as soon as he and Jillian stepped through his parents’ sliding glass door leading to the deck. Jillian lifted her brows and he ducked his head, lifting his hands in a helpless gesture. “What can I say? Uncle Dean is a crowd favorite.”
She pressed her lips together, the corners twitching with a repressed grin. “Because you are an overgrown child.”
“Maybe.” He gave her a quick, teasing kiss before stripping off his shirt and jumping in the water.
Jillian crossed the deck to where Georgia stood, struggling to keep newborn Savannah happy. The dark circles of motherhood rimmed the other woman’s eyes and Jillian held out her arms. “Aunt Jillian is on duty now, go lay down for a bit.”
The exhaustion etched on the other woman’s face melted into relief. “Wyatt and I have been taking turns at night, but then Memphis had a bad dream and only wanted Daddy and…” Her voice trailed off as she kissed her baby daughter’s head. “You’re a gift, Jillian.”
Tracy, Izzy, and Kelsey appeared from inside, their arms laden with food. Izzy snorted at Jillian. “At least she finally listened to you. We’ve all tried to take Savannah at one point or another today, but she insisted we were all too busy preparing the food to have to deal with a colicky baby.”
